Houston Chronicle April 19, 1998

Notes from a teacher/soldier
in the learning revolution



"...Student-centered teaching is not what I'm accustomed to, is not what I prospered under and is not what I am good at. It is the major teaching dilemma which I and many of my fellow teachers currently face."

By MARI CLAYTON GLAMSER

I loved high school history class. Mr. Walsh, who knew everything about everything, peered across his podium, enlightening mesmerized students copiously taking notes about the Hapsburgs and the Medicis. I vowed to be a teacher just like Mr. Walsh.

And I made good on my promise. My students love my lectures/ discussions. With endorphins flowing, I make points, emphatically pounding on the chalkboard, as I imbue them with the importance of knowing their rights and responsibilities as citizens of the school, the United States and the world. I am the master of my classroom/kingdom. I am in control and all is good.

Unfortunately, as we move from the Industrial Age to the Information Age, social studies teachers like Mr. Walsh and me are rapidly becoming dinosaurs. Declining costs have made digital technologies increasingly available to students at home, school and in the community. As a result, students no longer need teachers to recount events, especially when they can easily access primary sources through the Internet, video or one of 95 cable TV stations.

Digital technology is not only changing the way information can be acquired, it is also rapidly changing the job market. We keep hearing that we must prepare students for the 21st century; however, very few people explain what we must do other than the nebulous "integrate technology into our curriculum."

Information Age education must be more than students typing reports using word processors or making PowerPoint presentations. The greatest challenge of the Information Age is the rapid pace of change brought about by digital technology. No matter what jobs our students will hold -- auto mechanic, medical doctor or a job yet to be created -- they must be able to keep up with changing technology. Success in the Information Age will be defined by the ability to learn how to learn.

To "learn how to learn," students must take charge of their education through direct exploration, expression and experience. A learning revolution is occurring with a technology-driven, student-centered teaching model emerging. This model is democratic, as students and teachers share responsibility for both teaching and learning. Though intellectually I have bought into this shifting paradigm, student-centered teaching is not what I'm accustomed to, is not what I prospered under and is not what I am good at. It is the major teaching dilemma which I and many of my fellow teachers currently face.

Revolutions are uncomfortable and often bloody. This learning revolution is no different. I can radically alter myself, my students' attitudes and my lesson designs so that I am at the forefront of the revolution or I can wait for the vanguard to pass and be a follower. As I believe "if you are not the lead dog the view never changes," I choose to lead.

I think most people who go into teaching are not risk-takers. We had positive experiences with school. We are pleasers; we play the game. We like controlled situations and are not comfortable making mistakes. We do the right thing so that we have stellar evaluations from administrators.

To be part of the revolution, I must be in control of my classes without it being a controlled situation. I must understand that I am a trailblazer and will make mistakes. The key to making this revolution work is that I learn from my mistakes not only through self-reflection, but also through discussions with others who will not hold my mistakes against me at evaluation time. In addition, I must trust my students enough to let them out of their seats and to make mistakes of their own, a scary thought in some of my classes.

Student reactions to my initial attempts at a more student-centered teaching model have been interesting. My truly gifted and talented students are ecstatic and take off. My regular level students are unsure at first -- "You mean we can talk to each other?" "We can walk around the room without permission to get things we need?" "We can do projects using art and music rather than have multiple choice tests every Friday?" -- but don't take long to get with the program. It seems as though the regular students appreciate both the intellectual freedom and the freedom of movement the most.

However, many of my honors students, who are not particularly gifted intellectually but are hard-working achievers, are not enamored with this new model -- "Why can't we just follow the textbook and have weekly tests like all the other classes?" "Pleeeeease, can't you lecture today? I learn so much more when you tell us things than I do from talking to other students about their stupid projects," "I hate group work. I don't want my grade to suffer, so my parents and I end up doing the work for the whole group ourselves." We have done a great disservice to these students by making them more concerned with their grades than their education. I'm not sure how to turn these students around.

Perhaps my greatest dilemma of this learning revolution is having enough time to incorporate basic reading, writing and math skills, as well as the essential knowledge and skills in my courses as required by the state, into a student-centered learning model. I must have time to plan, implement, reflect upon, debug and redo my lessons. I need people who have actually implemented this type of learning to mentor me. I also need a support group of like-minded educators with whom I can share ideas and to keep me grounded in reality if I get too carried away with changing the world.

The transition from teacher-centered to student-centered learning is tough. My students, not I, must become the masters of my kingdom/classroom. Neither I, my students, my administrators nor my lessons are accustomed to this shift of control.

In the beginning, some lessons will have design flaws which allow students to bounce off the walls; some students will say they never learn anything in my class because we don't do work sheets; some administrators may take points off my evaluations because my students are loud and out of their seats.

I hope I'm not a casualty in this revolution. Even if I am, I can think of few other causes so deserving of a fight.